Xiang Yang looked through the booklet he had received from Grandmaster:
Soul Elder team - Mad Battle Team (eight consecutive wins - Milai City)
Captain: Mad Rhino, Martial Soul: Iron-Armored Rhinoceros, level 36 Power Attack System Soul Master, Soul Ring configuration: white, yellow, purple
Vice captain: Liu Zhu, Martial Soul: Pink Spider Empress, level 36 Control System Soul Master, Soul Ring configuration: yellow, yellow, purple
Member: Chen Xuan, Martial Soul: Ruyi Plate, level 34 Support System Soul Master, Soul Ring configuration: white, yellow, purple
Apart from the two pairs of twins from the original story—the two monkeys and two sheep, whose Soul Power Levels were all at 33 or 34—there were several other Soul Masters with Beast Martial Souls such as pigs, wolves, and snakes.
(Team battles involved seven to ten people. In the original story, Shrek had only seven, so no matter how many people the other side had, they could only field seven. In theory, they definitely had other members to substitute and rotate in.)
The team as a whole was not particularly strong, but their composition was excellent. They had buffs and control, tanks and assassins, and burst damage.
If I remember correctly, won't they come here a year from now? Wasn't it a team battle before the clash with the Imperial Battle Team? Why are they here early?
He thought about the profits their group had earned over the past few years and their team badge, which was about to advance to Gold Soul Fighting...
(Because most of them had not reached level 30 before, they had earned most of their team battle points while fighting at level 20.)
Looks like someone couldn't sit still but was afraid we'd refuse, so they brought in outside help. They're underestimating us a little, though, aren't they?
Flender and Yu Xiaogang had the same thought. "A challenge by name? Looks like they came prepared."
"Mm, but given their Soul Power Levels, they really can put the kids under a lot of pressure." Yu Xiaogang felt that this opponent would be difficult, but not unbeatable.
The Soul Power Levels of the eight Shrek members were:
Dai Mubai: 38
Oscar: 31
Tang San: 32
Ma Hongjun: 28
Xiao Wu: 32
Xiang Yang: 24
Ning Rongrong: 27
Zhu Zhuqing: 28
Tang San was still more than a month away from turning twelve (in the original story, he was twelve and level 29 when he enrolled). The others were much the same, but their Soul Power Levels had all risen considerably compared to the original story. Several had even reached their current limits, and it seemed their levels would change again in a few days at most.
Beyond that, the greater changes were their Soul Rings and the Self-Created Soul Skills each of them possessed.
It could be said that Xiang Yang felt quite a sense of accomplishment over this. If things continued developing as they were, even without Immortal Herbs, he could at least ensure that all of them reached the level of Titled Douluo.
Tang San followed his teacher's words. "That's right. We earned most of our team points while we were Soul Grandmasters, so Mubai, who has the highest Soul Power, hasn't fought in a long time. They don't know our true strength."
Given his strength, solo and duo matches were not much of a challenge to him either. He had not fought in over half a year, and he was not short of money.
Over the past few years, everyone except Xiao Wu had fought two to four times a month, all in solo and duo matches.
Whether they fought team battles was mainly up to Grandmaster. Sometimes, when he saw a promising team, he would have Shrek take the initiative to match up against them.
He believed they could only improve better under enough pressure; otherwise, it was a waste of time. They fought about once a month, though the frequency had dropped a little recently, mainly because most opponents were not much of a challenge, or their Soul Power was close to the Soul Ancestor level, leaving them unable to put up a fight at all.
The next night
The Great Soul Arena, central main arena
The Soul Fighting platform here was the largest, spacious enough for twenty Soul Masters to fight at once.
The host, dressed in a tailcoat, loudly announced some information about the two teams, stirring up the atmosphere and trying to get the audience to bet more on them.
As expected, the vast majority of people were unfamiliar with the Mad Battle Team and had placed their bets on the Monster Team, whose fame was unmatched.
This made the man sitting beside Manager Ao in an elegant room above very happy. "Good, keep betting. The more you bet, the more I earn."
Manager Ao seemed about to speak but stopped. This man was the person in charge of a Soul Fighting Arena in another city. A year ago, he had wanted to meddle in the affairs of the Soto Great Soul Arena and had come ahead of time to scout the place. After some "friendly discussion," he had made a wager with an important figure on a team battle, only for Shrek's group to ruin his plans. The Mad Battle Team was one of the ace teams on good terms with him back there.
At the time, he had considered taking revenge on those brats—though they wore masks, he could tell their approximate ages from their builds. But after someone warned him, he looked into them and found that they actually had two Soul Saints and three Soul Emperors! He had no choice but to abandon the idea and slink back home.
But the more he thought about it after backing down, the angrier he became. The Mad Battle Team also happened to catch his eye, and he deliberately befriended them, bringing about the current situation.
"Next, please welcome the Monster Team and the Mad Battle Team!"
"The Monster Team is unbeatable! The Monster Team is the best!" "What's so great about the Monster Team? The Mad Battle Team is much stronger!" "Brother, do you have some inside information? Let's have a chat." "Where did you come from?"
Amid the deafening clamor, Dai Mubai walked in front, leading the team into the arena. Across from them, a burly man and a bewitching woman stood on either side, with the others a few steps behind.
"Ha ha ha! Little ones, don't go crying and begging for mercy later." Mad Rhino threw back his head and laughed, his expression seeming to say that Shrek was beneath their notice.
"That's right, that's right. I think you little brothers and sisters should just get off the platform. After all, fists and feet have no eyes. What if your arms or legs get broken, or your faces get smashed? Ha ha ha ha..."
"Exactly..." "The vice captain is right. She really likes little children like you..."
Here we go again, the pre-match trash talk every fight has to have, Xiang Yang thought, a little bored.
Ma Hongjun could not quite hold his temper and retorted, "We don't need you worrying about us. Just watch how this young master burns you into a dead spider!" It could only be said that the influence of a Martial Soul was not so easy to change.
Dai Mubai frowned slightly and waved a hand. "Enough, Fatty. There's nothing to say. Let's see whose skills are better." As one of the heirs to the throne, he at least knew the basics of keeping his emotions off his face. Letting his emotions be shaken before a battle was a major taboo.
Just then, the host's voice came from above. "Soul Masters on both sides, take your positions!"
Who's this kid? He wasn't in the information, was he? Mad Rhino and the spider woman exchanged a glance. It looked like things would be a little more troublesome.
"Begin the battle!"
At the command, both sides used Martial Soul Possession at the same time. Brilliant lights of every kind shone across the platform, instantly bringing the entire arena's atmosphere to a climax.
"Roar!"
Seeing Mad Rhino covered in a thick layer of armor, each step of his charge seemingly carrying unstoppable might, Dai Mubai let out a tiger's roar and rushed forward to block him.
Bang! Crash!
The two clashed fiercely, fist against fist and palm against palm. At first glance, they seemed evenly matched, but this was only a warm-up for Dai Mubai, while Mad Rhino was having a miserable time.
His opponent's swift, fierce attacks carried a sharp edge that made his skin sting as though it were being scraped by a blade.
This is bad, he's a tough one! There was no time to think further. "First Soul Skill, Heavy Armor Protection!"
The armor on his body became even more imposing. Its greater weight brought greater strength and defense, finally stopping the assault.
Elsewhere, black bamboo poles two or three meters long were planted in the ground on either side of Tang San, guarding the three support Soul Masters.
Ma Hongjun stood nearby, spitting fireball after fireball at the other side. Because of their speed and the distance, they missed, but they burned the webs laid by the spider woman Liu Zhu to tatters.
"Damn it, what are you two monkeys and two sheep doing?" Her furious expression made Ma Hongjun unable to resist mocking her. "That's it? That's all? Weren't you acting so arrogant? Looks to me like you've got little skill and a big temper!"
Hmph! Damn fatty... This guy isn't even fat. She glared hard at Ma Hongjun. Just you wait!